Kofi Tonto, a National Communications Member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has criticised President John Dramani Mahama over Ghana’s involvement in an international cocaine scandal, arguing that the President should have dismissed his advisors.
His comments follow attempts by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government to blame the previous NPP administration, with the government communicators arguing that the removal of the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) from port inspections in 2018 created a security gap at the country’s ports.
However, Kofi Tonto said the issue goes beyond the alleged policy weakness, arguing that officials responsible for overseeing the system should have identified the problem and brought it to the President’s attention.
Kofi Tonto maintained that President Mahama should have taken immediate action against the officials advising him, particularly because the alleged policy gap had reportedly remained in place for two years without being addressed.
According to Kofi Tonto, the failure of the President’s advisors to alert him to the situation raises questions about their effectiveness and accountability.
Speaking on TV3 New Day, Kofi Tonto stated, “In fact, if I were the president, I would have fired all the people who advised me that day. I would have fired them immediately,” he said.
“They are telling me that they knew there was a bad policy and they supervised over that bad policy until the country faced embarrassment, global embarrassment, before telling me, the president, that there is a lacuna or a lapse at the port,” he said.
Kofi Tonto further compared the situation to supervisors allowing goods to be stolen from a company while keeping the owner unaware of the problem, using the example to explain why he believes the delay in addressing the alleged lapse is serious.
“If you close this loophole, you’ll stop losing that $10 million. How would you feel?” he asked.
He described the situation as a major failure on the part of officials who were expected to understand and monitor the system.
“They did absolutely nothing about it until we faced a global embarrassment,” Kof Tonto added.
Meanwhile, the Kwabenya Circuit Court has denied bail to six persons, including 4 Customs officers accused of being connected to the export of nearly four tonnes of suspected cocaine from Ghana to France.
The four accused persons are linked to the Ghana Revenue Authority and are facing allegations relating to their handling of the Customs scanning process at Tema Port.
Reports suggest the accused were brought before the court on Thursday, September 17, 2026, in connection with four 40-foot containers that allegedly left Tema Port and were subsequently intercepted in France.
The six accused persons are Francis Narh Amanor, Frank Adu-Boahen, Togbe Agbeti, Andrews Tetteh Amponsah, Daniel Laryea and Helena Akua Denkyi.
The court has adjourned the case to September 24, 2026, while investigations continue.
@ghnow_ Ghanaian actress Vicky Zugah was present to support Tima Kumkum at the “Be Inspired by Tima” Women’s Conference. #GHnow #fyp ♬ original sound – Wasako Lyrics
@ghnow_ Tima Kumkum and Akumaa Mama Zimbi share a joyful moment as they connect and celebrate together at the “Be Inspired by Tima” Women’s Conference. #GHnow #fyp ♬ Wa Ye Wie – Kuami Eugene
